Combined seed-planter and fertilizer-distributer.



*PATENTBD SEPT. 1, 1903.-

.'I, H. MoDANIEL. COMBINED SEED PLANTBR AND FERTILIZER DISTRIBUTER.

APPLIGATION FILED MAR. 31. 1903.

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v PATENTED SEPT. 1, 1903. J. H. MoDANIBL. I COMBINED SEED PLANTBR AND FERTILIZER DISTRIBUTER.

APPLICATION FILED MAR. 31. 1903.

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J. H. McDANIEL. COMBINED SEED PLANTER AND FERTILIZER DISTRIBUTER.

APPLICATION FILED MAR. 31. 1903.

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U TTED STATES Ifatented September 1,1901%.

PATENT OFFICE.

'JAMEs HENRY MCDANIEL, or MILLSAP, TEXAS.

PEGIFIOATION formingpart of Letters Patent No. 737,857, dated September 1, 1903.

Original application filed September 10. 1902, Serial No. 122,845. Divided and this application filed March 31, 1903. Serial N01150A39. (No-model.) i.

To all whom, it may concern.-

Be it known that I, JAMES HENRY MODAN- IEL, a citizen of the United States, residing at Millsap, in the county of Parkerand State of Texas,have invented a new and useful CoinbinedSeed-Planter and Fertilizer-Distributer, of which the following is a specification.

This invention relates to a combined seedplanter and fertilizer-distributer, and is a division of my 'copending application, Serial No. 122,845, filed September 10, 1902. The machine contemplated by both applications is an agricultural implement or planter which can be readily adapted for strewing or for check-row planting with or without a checkwire. The mechanism for feeding the seeds or fertilizer, or both, is geared to the carryingwheels for actuation thereby, and the dropping mechanism which regulates the dropping of the seeds is designed to be driven by either of two forms of operating mechanism. These separate operating devices are, first, an attachment designed for cooperation with the check-wire, so that as the machine advances across the field the dropping mechanism will be operated at intervals to drop the seeds, and, second, a connection between the dropping mechanism and the vehicle-wheels, this latter mechanism serving, likethe other, to efiect the dropping of the seeds at intervals.

The first application above identified is directed to the protection of the machine in general, with special reference to the actuation of the dropping mechanism by the checkwire attachment. The present application is directed to the protection of the machine, with special reference to the actuation of the dropping mechanism from the vehiclewheels.

It may therefore be said that the object of the present in vention. is to produce a novel seed-planter and fertilizer-distributer embracing feeding and dropping mechanisms operated from the vehicle-wheels to deposit seeds or fertilizer, or both, in predetermined quantities and at desired intervals as the planter advances across the field.

To the accomplishment of this object and others subordinate thereto, as will hereinafter more fully appear, the invention resides in the construction and arrangement of parts to be described, illustrated in the accompanying drawings, and succinctly claimed.

\ In said drawings, Figure 1 is a plan view of the machine complete. Fig. 2 is a longitudinal sectional view on the line 2 2 of Fig. 1. Fig. 3 is a vertical sectional view on the line 3 3 of Fig. 1. Fig. 4 is a vertical section on the line 4 4: of Fig. 3. Fig. 5 is a horizontal section through one of the seedboxes, show ing in plan the feed-disk and its dog. Fig. 6 is a detail view of the machine-clutch and its operating device. Fig. 7 is a detail View through a portion of the gearing, and Fig. 8 is a detail perspective view of the runnersupport.

'Like numerals of referenceare employed to designate corresponding parts throughout the several views.

The framel of the machine comprises a pair of parallel beams 2, connected by transverse beamsB, and is supported by the usual carrying-wheels 4, mounted upon an axle 5, journaled in suitable bearings adjacent to the rearend of the frame, Independent rotation of the wheels in making a turn is provided for by adjustably securing one of the Wheels to the axleas, for instance, by a set-screw 6, passed through the hub 7 of the Wheeland by mounting the other of said wheels loosely upon the axle between a pair of ad justable collars 8, secured to the axle by setscrews 9. r

At the front end of the frame is a transverse draft-bar 10, to which is attached the rear end of the tongue 11. To the tongue is socured a short post 12 for the attachment of the front end of a lever 13, having adjnstable connection with a post 1 1, upstanding from the bar 10. The lever 13 extends to the rear end ofthe machine to be within easy access from the drivers seat 15, supported above a central beam 16, constituting a part of the frame structure. The lever 13 is provided with the usual spring-latch 17, engaging a rack 18, and is designed to changethe angular relation between the tongue and the frame in a manner well understood in the art for the purpose of raising or lowering the runners or furrow-openers, to be hereinafter described.

In advance of the carrying-wheels the frame 1 supports a comparatively long transverselydisposed trough-shaped receptacle 19, divided by partitions to define a central gear-case 20, a pair of fertilizer-boxes 21 and 22, and end compartments 23 and 24, in which latter are disposed cylindrical seedboxes 25, designed for the reception of corn or other seeds. Be low the receptacle 19 are disposed seed-tubes 26, above each of which are located a pair of openings 27 and 28 in the bottom walls of the adjacent seed and fertilizer compartments, the opening 28 being located at the outer end of the fertilizer-box, as shown in Fig. 3. At the bottom of each seed-tube is disposed a pivotally-supported shoe 29, disposed to be swung laterally to accommodate the adjustment of the runners or furrow-openers 30, having bifurcated rear ends which receive the reduced lower ends of the hopper-shaped shoes 29.-

The front ends of the runners are adjust-' able upon the draft-bar and are secured in their adjusted positions by pins 31, passed through the draft-bar, as indicated in Fig. 1. The retention of the rear ends of the runners is effected by what may be termed a runnersupport. This support comprises an anglebar 32, secured to the under side of the frame, as indicated in Fig. 2, and pendent brace-rods 33 and 34, the lower ends of which are bolted or otherwise secured to the rear ends of the runners. These brace-rods, a pair of which are provided for each runner, as best shown in Fig. 8, are adjnstably secured to the angle-bar 32 by bolts 35, passed through suitable openings 36 in the bar, said openings being arranged in series to permit the attachment of the brace-rods at any desired point in accordance with the desired adjustment of the runners. It will thus be seen that the interval between the rows may be regulated by the lateral adjustment of the runners, which adjustment is accommodated bythe swinging of the shoes 29.

Extending through the fertilizer-boxes 21 and 22 and terminating just within the end compartments 23 and 24 of the receptacle 19 is a feed-shaft 37, journaled in the several partitions and provided with a sprocketwheel 38 within the gear-case 20. This feedshaft is designed to be rotated from the axle 5, and While any desired character of intermediate gearing may be employed I prefer to gear the wheel 38 upon the shaft 37 with a similar-sprocket-wheel 39 through the medium of a sprocket-chain 40. The wheel 39 is mounted on a short shaft 41, journaled in suitable bearings upstanding from the beam 16, and upon said shaft is keyed a somewhat smaller (or it may be larger) sprocket-wheel 42, geared bya chain 43 to a somewhat larger sprocket-wheel 44, loosely mounted on the axle 5. The wheel 44 (see Fig. 6) is urged by a spring 45 to present the clutch-hub 46 the axle.

of said wheel to a c1utch-disk 47, fixed upon The clutch-hub 46 and clutch-disk 47 constitute the elements of the machineclutch which when the device is in use operatively connects the feed-shaft with the axle, so that the feeding mechanism will beoperated by the advance of the machine. For the purpose of throwing the clutch out of gear when desired I provide a clutch-lever 48, secured to the upper end of a shaft 49,

provided at its lower-end with a cam 50, bear-' ing against a swinging yoke 51, engaging the hub 46. It is obvious that by swinging the lever 48 the cam 50 will be moved to swing the yoke 51, and thus withdraw the clutchhub 4 from engagement with the clutchdisk 47 against the resistance opposed to such movement by the spring 45.

Below each of the seedboxes 25 is mounted a rotary feed-disk 52, provided with an annular series of openings 53, designed to be i brought successively into coincidence with the opening 27 to permit the gravitation of tl1eseeds from the seedboX to the subjacent seed-tube. A step-by-step advance is imparted to each feed-disk 52 from the feedshaft 37, upon each end of which latter is mounted an actuating-disk 54, provided with one or more tappet-arms 55, disposed to suecessively engage pins or projections 56 upstanding from the feed-disks 52. When a tappet-arm is brought into contact with one of the pins or projections 56 through the rotation of the feed-shaft, it rotates the disk 52 to present one of the openings 53 therein over the opening 27, and this rotation of the disk presents the next succeeding pin in position to be engaged by the tappet-arm upon the next rotation of the shaft.

It is desirable to lock the disks 52 after each movement thereof, and for this purpose I provide for each disk a swinging dog 57, disposed to engage peripheral notches 58 in said disk and provided with a strip-arm 59. As the tappet-arm moves toward a pin 56 of the disk it first strikes the strip-arm 59 of the dog to force the latter out of engagement with the disk and subsequently strikes the pin and advances the disk, the dog 57 being moved into engagement with the next succeeding notch by a spring 60 as soon as the disk has completed its movement and the tappet-arm moves out of engagement with the pin. If a more rapid feed is desired, it is simply necessary to mount other tappetarms upon each actuating-disk 54, so that the feed-disk will be advanced the desired number of steps during each rotation of the feed-shaft. The openings 53 in the feed-disk constitute, in effect, pockets the capacity of which is just equal to the quantity of seeds desired to be dropped at each advance of the disk. In order, therefore, to prevent more than this predetermined quantity of seeds from dropping from the seedbox when one of the openings 53 is brought into coincidence with the opening 27, I provide within the ICS -the dropper is rotated.

seedbox a guard 61, having the form of a brush, retained in any suitable manner and located directly above the opening 27.

The size of the feed-opening 28 of each of the fertilizer-boxes 21 and 22 is regulated by a pair of adjustable gage-plates 62 and 63, and immediately above this opening the feedshaft is provided with what may be termed a feed-head 64,which is,in effect,a cylindrical enlargement of the shaft and is provided with radial feed-blades 65, arranged in two closelyadjacent circumferential series. The bladesof each series are disposed in alternating arrangement with those of the other series to produce a staggered arrangement, which is quite effective for the feeding of the fertilizer from the box to the tube 26 through the opening 28. For the purpose of continually stirring the fertilizer and for feeding it toward the outer end of the box I provide the shaft with what may be termed propellerblades 66, disposed upon said shaft in spiral arrangement, so that as the feed-shaft rotates the contents of each of the boxes 21 and 22 will be constantly stirred and propelled toward the discharge-opening. The positive feeding of the fertilizer through the opening 28 is assured by a feed-roller 67, located within said opening and mounted on a shaft 68. This shaft is mounted in suitable hearings in the under side of the receptacle 19, and one of the rollers 67 is mounted on each end thereof for disposal within each of the openings 28 of the two fertilizer-boxes. At the center of the shaft 68 is keyed a sprocketwheel 69, which, as is clearly shown in Fig. 2, is engaged by the sprocket-chain 40, so that when the machine is in motion the feedshafts 37 and 68 will be rotated to effect the simultaneous feeding-of seeds and fertilizer to each of the seed-tubes.

Having considered the feeding mechanism, I will next proceed'with the description of the dropping mechanism designed to be operated at intervals to drop the seeds and fertilizer previously fed to the seed-tubes in the manneralreadyexplained. Journaledin suitable bearings in the under side of the frame is a transversely-disposed dropper-shaft 70, upon the opposite ends of which are mounted rotary droppers 71. Each dropper is located at the front side of one of the feed-tubes 26, the front wall of which is cut away, as shown in Fig. 4. These droppers each include a hub 72, mounted on the shaft 70, and a series of blades 73, extending radially from the hub' and designed to extend successively across and close the seed-tube, (see Fig. 4,) the back wall of the tube being preferably provided with a yielding plate 74, which insures the closing of the opening through the tube and at the same time prevents binding of the blades against the back wall of the tube when It will now be observed that if the droppers are in the position indicated in Fig. 4 of the drawings and the feeding mechanism is operated a suitable quantity of seeds and fertilizer will be dropped into the upper ends of the tubes and caught by the horizontally-disposedblades of the droppers.

In order to rotate the droppers to permit the dropping of the seeds and fertilizer to the ground, I provide operating mechanism designed to be driven either from the carrying-wheels or from a check-wire, as desired. Upon the dropper-shaft is keyed a ratchetdisk 75, having a number of teeth corresponding to the number of blades constituting a dropper. These teeth are designed to be engaged by a pawl 76, which when the machine is organized for wireless planting isposite extremity with a link 79, which is in turn connected to a crank-arm 80 at one end of the shaft 41. As the machine is advanced over the field the rotation of the shaft 41 will effect the oscillation of the arm 77, which will in turn reciprocate the pawl 76. In Fig. 2 this pawl is shown nearly at the limit of its stroke, and it will be evident that when it is again moved forward its beak will engage the next tooth of the ratchet-disk 75, so that the retraction of the pawl will eEect just sufficient rotary movement of the droppershaft to cause the dropping of the seeds and fertilizer by the droppers and to present the next blades of the droppers in obstructing positions across the seed-tubes.

Reverse rotation of the dropper-shaf t is prevented by a spring-dog 78 engaging the teeth of the disk 75. It is also desirable, for reasons which will be hereinafter explained, to provide for locking the shaft against rotation in either direction. I therefore mount upon the shaft 70 a check-wheel 79, having its teeth reversed and disposed for engagement with a spring-dog 80 In order to move this dog out of engagement with the check-wheel to permit the rotation of the shaft by the pawl 76, said pawl is provided with a pin 81, which as the pawl moves forward to engage a new tooth of the disk contacts with the dog and moves the latter to an inoperative position, where it remains until the tooth of the check-wheel has moved too farto be caught by the dog.

Instead of operating the pawl 76 from the carrying-wheels it may be operated with equal facility from a check-wire; but this checkwire attachment constitutes no part of my present invention and will not be specifically ized for wireless check-row planting, it is gearing is such that the droppers are operated once for each complete rotation of the feed-shaft, and if, therefore, a single tappet- 'arm 55 is employed the seeds dropped each time will be only such as'are fed to the seedtubes by a single advance movement of each feed-disk. If, on the contrary, a larger numher-say four-of tappet-arms are mounted on each of the actuating-disks, each feed-disk will be advanced four times, to increase the quantity of seeds fourfold, in the interval between each movement of the droppers. By the employment of the proper number of tappet-arms the feed may be properly regulated to adapt the device for the planting of any character of seeds.

If it is desired to strew the seeds and fertilizer instead of dropping it atintervals, the pawl 76 is either entirely removed or at least disconnected from its operating mechanism and the removable blade of each dropper is detached, so as to leave the passages through the seed-tubes perfectly free and unobstructed. If now the machine is advanced, the feeding mechanism will operate, as heretofore explained, and the seeds and fertilizer will be deposited without interference from the dropping mechanism, attention being called to the fact that during the employment of the machine for strewing the dropper-shaft will be held stationary by the dogs 78 and 80 engaging the disk and the check-wheel 79.

For the purpose of distinguishing the boxes 21 and 22 from the seedboxes I have referred to them as fertilizer-boxes, for the reason that in planting most seedsas, forinstance, corn and the like-it is desirable to simultaneously distribute more or less fertilizer. The machine has been constructed, however, with a View to adapting it for the planting of cotton-seeds, and for this character of planting the boxes 21 and 22 are utilized as seedboxes, since the feeding mechanism employed in connection therewith is particularly adaptable for the feeding of cotton-seeds as well as for the feeding of fertilizer. The feed-heads 64, provided with the blades 65, are very effective for forcing the cotton-seeds down through the openings 28, and the spirally-arranged stirring and propeller blades 66 are particularly useful for continuously stirring the body of cotton-seeds and for propelling the latter toward the discharge ends of the boxes.

It is thought that from the foregoing the construction and operation of my combined seed-planter and fertilizer-distributor will be clearly apparent; but while the illustrated embodiment of the invention is thought at this time to be preferable I Wish to be distinctly understood as reserving to myself the rightto effect such changes, modifications, and variations of the illustrated structure as may be fairly embraced within the scope of the protection prayed.

What I claim is- 1. In a planter, the combination with a frame and carryingwheels, of seedboxes, seed-tubes, feeding mechanism within the seedboxes, dropping mechanism within the seed-tubes, a shaft disposed at the rear side of the boxes and operatively connected to the dropping mechanism, and means for operating the shaft from the wheels.

2. In a planter, the combination with a frame and carrying-wheels, of seedboxes, seed-tubes, shoes and runners, feeding mechanism within the seedboxes, a dropper-shaft extending between the seed-tubes, rotary droppers within said tubes, a ratchet-wheel mounted on the dropper-shaft, a pawl engag ing the ratchet-wheel to effect the step-bystep rotation of the dropper-shaft, and means operated from the vehicle-wheels for reciproeating the pawl.

3. In a planter, the combination with a frame and carrying-wheels, seedboxes, seedtubes, shoes and runners, of a dropper-shaft extending between the seed-tubes, rotary droppers carried by the shaft, and each comprising a series of radial blades, a ratchetwheel mounted on the dropper-shaft, a pawl for operating said wheel, and an operative connection between the pawl and the carrying-wheels.

4. In a planter, the combination with a frame and carrying wheels, seedboxes, seedtubes, shoes and runners, of 'a dropper-shaft, extending between the seed-tubes, rotary droppers carried by the'shaft and comprising radial blades for successive presentation across the tubes, 2. ratchet-wheel mounted on the shaft, a pawl for operating the ratchetwheel, a swinging arm connected to the pawl, and means'for operating said arm from the carrying-wheels.

5. In a planter, the combination with a frame and. carrying-wheels, of seedboxes, seed-tubes, shoes and runners, a droppershaft, rotary droppers mounted thereon, a ratchet-wheel mounted on the shaft, a pawl and a dog, .both disposed to engage the ratchetwheel, means operated from the carryingwheels to actuate the pawl, and thus efiect the step-by-step rotation of the dropper-shaft, and means operated by the movement of the pawl for releasing the dog from the wheel.

6. In a planter, the combination with a frame and carrying Wheels, of seedboxes, seed-tubes, shoes and runners, a droppershaft, rotary droppers. and a ratchet-wheel mounted on the shaft, a pawl and a dog both engaging the ratchet-wheel, a projection on a pawl disposed to engage the dog, a crankshaft geared to the carrying-wheels, and gearing connecting said crank-shaft to the pawl.

7. In a planter, the combination with a frame and carrying wheels, of seedboxes, seed-tubes, shoes and runners, feeding mechanism within the seedboxes, dropping mechanism within the seed-tubes, a shaft geared independently to the feeding and dropping mechanisms, and gearing between said shaft and the carrying-wheels, said last-named gearing including a clutch.

8. In a planter, the combination with a frame and carrying wheels, of seedboxes, seed-tubes, shoes and runners, feeding mechanism within the seedboxes, a dropper-shaft, rotary droppers and a ratchet-wheel mounted on said shaft, a pawl engaging the ratchet- I JAMES HENRY MODANIEL.

Witnesses:

W. C. MCFALL, D. S. WRIGHT. 

